WINCHESTER, Va. – EMU Track & Field completed their opening weekend of the indoor season with a trip up I-81 for the Holiday Kickoff at Shenandoah University in Winchester, Va. Every event group had their moment in the spotlight for the Royals, with four event wins and 12 top-three podium finishes combined between the men and women.

EMU MEN RESULTS
EMU WOMEN RESULTS
FULL MEET RESULTS

Highlights – Men

• DISTANCE/MID-DISTANCE
  • Following up his 5000m win at Liberty on Friday, Bellamy Immanuel won a pair of events at Shenandoah, running a 4:24.04 to claim gold in the mile. Later in the afternoon, Immanuel won the 3000-meter run, breaking the tape in 9:00.84.
  • Nate Lehman and Alex Belisle also broke the five-minute barrier in the mile, running times of 4:53.09 and 4:59.22, respectively. Lehman finished seventh overall to score a couple of points for the team.
• SPRINTS
  • Jowell Gonzalez-Santiago continued to impress in his first weekend of collegiate competition. The freshman from Broadway, Va., took home third place in the 200-meter dash, clocking in at 23.26 for one lap around the indoor track.
  • Damon Morgan qualified for the final of the 60-meter dash, finishing third in a time of 7.11. Morgan's semifinal time of 7.05 is a personal record by .02-second, improving his position as #2 all-time in EMU history for the 60m.
  • Shaddai Bailey, a first-year out of Garner, N.C., made the podium in the 60-meter hurdles with a third-place finish and a time of 9.38.
• JUMPS
  • In an opening weekend full of great first-year performances, Micah Mast added another one with a victory in the pole vault, clearing a height of 11'-11.5" (3.65m).
• THROWS
  • The throwers made their season debut at Shenandoah, with Grant Leichty leading the group in the shot put, finishing 10^th overall with a mark of 38'-9.25".

Highlights – Women

• DISTANCE/MID-DISTANCE
  • Coming off an awesome cross country campaign, Lucy Unzicker led a pack of Royals distance runners, placing third in the mile in a personal best time of 5:30.21. EMU occupied the next four spots behind Unzicker, with Jenna Weaver, Elili Asefa, Halie Mast, and Vanessa Gardiner finishing fourth through seventh, respectively. Asefa achieved a new PR of 5:35.11 in her fifth-place showing.
  • Unzicker also placed highly in the 3000-meter run, setting a new PR of 11:12.47 to place seventh.
  • Asefa also ran well in the 800-meter run, taking home runner-up honors in a time of 2:29.81.
• SPRINTS
  • Sha'Dymon Blanton took home silver in the 60-meter hurdles, running under 10 seconds for the first time with a personal record of 9.90 seconds.
  • Blanton also PR'd in the 60m, clocking in at 8.59 to finish seventh and narrowly miss the final.
• JUMPS
  • Angel David, a first-year out of Richmond, won the triple jump with a PR jump of 34'-7.75" (10.56m). David ranks sixth all-time on the EMU indoor triple jump list after just two meets.
  • Faith Schultz, another first-year, placed second in the high jump with a clearance of 4'-11.5" (1.51m).
  • Speaking of second place finishes, that is what Kailee Franklin achieved in the pole vault, getting over the bar at 9'-0.25" (2.75m).
• THROWS
  • In her college debut, Lily Gatesman threw 31'-9.5" (9.69m) in the shot put to place 12th.

 
What's Next
The EMU Track & Field team will have to wait a while for their next opportunity to compete on Sunday, Jan. 14, 2024 at the Kaye and JJ Smith Invitational, also at Shenandoah University.

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